Bryan Hansel (@bryanhansel.com)

The BWCA’s Bear Aware Food Storage Order is back for 2026. Here’s how to hang your food when perfect trees don’t exist and when bear canisters make more sense.

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How to Bear Hang Your Food When the Trees Suck: A Guide to the New BWCAW Bear Aware Order Superior National Forest reissued its BWCAW Bear Aware Food Storage Order effective February 1, 2026. The order requires visitors to either hang all food, food containers, and scented items or store them in an Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee–certified bear-resistant container. The reissued order remains in effect for an additional five years. The requirement runs from April 1 to November 30 of each year, which is one fewer month than the previous order. The last order required food storage from March 1 to November 30. New FAQ Questions with the New Order… https://www.paddlinglight.com/articles/how-to-bear-hang-your-food-when-the-trees-suck-a-guide-to-the-new-bwcaw-bear-aware-order/